1. Field of Invention
At least some embodiments described herein relate generally to power outlets.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Electrical appliances (e.g., office or home equipment, measuring instruments, medical devices, datacenter equipment such as routers and servers, etc.) may be configured to receive and operate on AC or DC power from an AC or DC source. Such electrical appliances commonly include a power supply cord that is configured to couple the electrical appliance (e.g., directly or via another device such as an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)) to an AC or DC power outlet that provides AC or DC power to the appliance from the AC or DC source.
Typical power supply cords include conductors on one end which are configured to be coupled with (i.e., form an electrical connection with) conductors of the power outlet when the power supply cord is coupled to the power outlet. Once the power supply cord and the power outlet are coupled together, AC or DC power from the power outlet is provided to the electrical appliance via the outlet and power supply cord. The AC or DC power received from the power outlet may be provided directly to the electrical appliance or may first be converted to AC power and/or conditioned via a UPS coupled between the power outlet and the appliance.